Mandu opened in the fall of 2006 by Chef Yesoon Lee and her two children, Jean and Danny. Located on 18th street in Dupont, Chef Lee presides over the kitchen making sure that the recipes and dishes taste as she was originally taught being raised in Seoul. Her specialty is creating homestyle Korean dishes that one would enjoy in her own kitchen. Jean and Danny run the operations and service, making it a fun and energetic environment that provides the comfort and ease of a neighborhood restaurant. In January 2011, Mandu expanded to another location at the City Vista building in the Mount Vernon Triangle neighborhood.

I was just there for dinner, but about a month ago I was there for brunch and it was amazing. Their normal menu is pretty good, but there's something about their brunch that's extra appealing to me. This is a really good place to introduce people to Korean food. I don't drink, but their happy hour is AMAZING!!

Mandu has tasty, creative Korean specialties on the menu, and there should be something for everyone, even the novice. The starter dumplings are soft pillows, the pork with seared vegetables to be piled into lettuce leaves with hot sauce -- yummy and you get to eat with your hands! The staff are very nice, informative, attentive, and do not hover. There is limited outdoor seating; the indoor seating is not overly squished-in, and the wooden chairs are comfortable. Warning for those having trouble with steps -- restrooms are upstairs; the noise level is such that you may have to raise your voice to converse. However, those small issues aside -- it is all about the food: We had our second meal at Mandu last week, and both times the dishes were delicious, well cooked and well-presented. Highly recommend.

I absolutely love Mandu. I don't live in DC anymore, but every time I visit I make sure to stop here. Awesome food with a lot of variety in flavor and spices. Cocktails are always on point and happy hour is an amazing deal. I've never brought someone here who wasn't a huge fan.

This is a terrific restaurant when you want a break from the usual food one finds at good restaurants and especially when you want to take friends out for a new experience. The Korean food is delicious, the atmosphere is cozy down stairs and outside (a little less so upstairs) and the price is modest. The Bibimbap (SP?) in the stone bowl is my favorite. We have taken many guest who eat out at good restaurants a lot; most of them had never had authentic Korean food and they've loved it. It seems the 20 and 30-something generations have discovered it recently and it has become very popular so reservations are highly recommended.

This was a middle of the road Korean meal. We both had Bulgogi which was brought to the table cooked as opposed to having a open charcoal or gas cooker. It was tasty but lacked the flexibility and freshness of a meal prepared at the table. The pear cocktail was refreshing.

I usually love Mandu, but all of us had beef that was tough and nervy and dry this time - odd. I got the Bulgogi which is usually amazing - but it was awful this time. Maybe a very odd "off day" - but Korean beef is usually so tender and juicy - and usually it is at the 18th St Mandu, but not this time. Ugh.

This was our first time to Mandu. The food was delicious and the service was great! No complaints. It was a little more casual than I was expecting, but it was fine. We started with the pan-fried vegetable dumplings which were amazing. They then offered a plate with small servings of kimchee, pickled cucumber slices, potatoes and soy sauce, broccoli with sesame seeds, sautéed tofu and bean sprouts. They were each so good! I ordered the bibim bap with tofu and loved it. The spicy bean curd is served on the side so you can decide how spicy you want it. My husband ordered the chicken thighs and potatoes. Our waiter was very friendly and helpful. We will definitely go back again.

I went to Mandu's to celebrate some birthdays and it was such a great time. Walking in the hostess was friendly and escorted us to our table. The server followed him with a pleasant attitude and walked us through the menu. The food was so good. We had various meals that were easy to share with the group. I would like to go back for their happy hour specials soon.